Just like that, we’ve reached the final week of the 2025 high school football season. The Carmi-White County Bulldogs will make the short trip over to Eldorado on Friday night to take on the Eagles in what will be the last game of the season for both teams.
The Bulldogs are coming off a 19-0 loss at home against Edwards County last week. Carmi sits at 0-8 on the year and will try to avoid their first 0-9 season since 1967. It hasn’t been the kind of season anyone hoped for, but this group still has one last shot to end it on a positive note.
It’s been a tough road for the Bulldogs this fall. Between injuries and the amount of young players seeing the field, it’s been a year full of challenges and learning experiences. But even with all of that, this team has continued to fight every single week.
The Bulldogs had their best offensive performance of the season in Week 7 against CZRE, but they weren’t able to replicate that performance against the Lions last week. The Bulldogs only mustered 150 yards of offense, but what hurt them the most was going 4-for-12 on 3rd down and 2-for-7 on 4th down. Carmi only trailed 6-0 at the half, but they weren’t able to finish drives in the 2nd half and the Lions took advantage.
The Bulldogs will face another challenging opponent on Friday as they face the Eagles. Eldorado is also playing their final game of the season as they come in with a 2-6 record, with their lone wins coming over Edwards County and Hamilton County. As much as Carmi’s season has been defined by “what if,” the very same could be said for the Eagles. Out of their six losses, four of them have been decided by eight points or less. The Eagles are a couple of bounces away from potentially being a playoff team.
Carmi and Eldorado have nearly identical offensive styles: the T formation. Although the Eagles have the capability to spread things out, they want to pound the rock and grind out the clock, just like the Bulldogs.
Eldorado’s offense has been led all year by senior running back Kaiden Henson (#15). Henson has been one of the best players in the Black Diamond Conference this season, leading the league in rushing with 1,113 yards on 203 carries with 17 touchdowns. He’s big, powerful, and tough to bring down once he gets going.
Alongside Henson, the Eagles have Maddex Rash (#9), who’s added 524 yards on 81 carries. Rash hasn’t found the end zone on the ground yet, but he’s caught 10 passes for 108 yards and two touchdowns. Eldorado will also mix in Keton Hargrove (#1) and Jayston Robinson (#34), who have combined for 124 yards this season on 35 touches.
When the Eagles do throw the ball, their quarterback Jordan Jones (#7) has been pretty solid. Jones has attempted 34 passes for 228 yards and four touchdowns with one interception.
Friday night’s game will be an emotional one for Carmi-White County, as it will mark the final time six Bulldog seniors suit up for the maroon and white. Brodie Swanberg, Nolan Aud, Josyah Perez, Michael Miller, Dakota Southerd, and Madden Anderson will all play their final game under the lights.
Although the season hasn’t gone the way they hoped, these six players have all played key roles in the program over the years, both on and off the field. Head Coach Clinton Wolff spoke about each of them with pride and appreciation.
“Five of our seniors have been in the program all four years, Brodie was here as a freshman and he moved and then came back, specifically to play with the guys that he grew up with. Brodie’s done a fantastic job coming back and fitting in with our guys.”
“Poor Nolan, who I feel like has been a great spark plug for us vocally, gets hurt in shop class in a freak accident, but has always given us everything he’s had and is a great kid.”
“Josyah is leaps and bounds where he was at as a young kid to where he’s at now. Our ladies in the office talk about his growth and maturity that he’s had over the last four years. Again, a freak deal, we get a fumble recovery, and he’s running and trying to block and gets his leg whipped and now has a high ankle sprain, and so now he’s out.”
“Michael Miller he does a great job for us. He’s been a two-year starter on the line, and he’s always given 100% effort.”
“Dakota Southerd had to step in for us as a sophomore due to injury, played as a sophomore on that playoff team and played last year both ways. Just hats off to him, I know he’s got some ambitions on going to the next level, and I just hope his efforts and the fruits of his labor get to pay off for him.”
“And then you talk about Madden. It’s a little personal with him, hats off to him he’s just a great kid that comes from a great family, and does everything we ask,” said CWC Head Coach Clinton Wolff.
Kickoff for Friday’s game is set for 7 PM at Boz Adams Field in Eldorado. Fans who can’t make the trip can listen to all the action live on 97.3 FM WRUL and online at WRUL.com. It will be a radio-only broadcast since there is no internet connection available for the visiting team in Eldorado’s pressbox.